why PCI over USB?
- Thread starter Skeptic
- Start date
Pci cards generally have bigger/better antenna when compared to usb which helps the signal.
Ocuk sell a high gain usb adapter which people seem to rate, if you compare that to a pci card I doubt there would be much in it and you have freedom to move the usb unit around. I personally would go for a pci card as I prefer the idea of having the network card hard wired into the pc but assuming you get a decent brand go for which ever you prefer.
Ocuk sell a high gain usb adapter which people seem to rate, if you compare that to a pci card I doubt there would be much in it and you have freedom to move the usb unit around. I personally would go for a pci card as I prefer the idea of having the network card hard wired into the pc but assuming you get a decent brand go for which ever you prefer.
PCI is better in the sense that:
1) It has higher bandwidth than USB1.1
2) In my experience PCI network adapters 'start up' quicker than USB i.e. connect up straight away when you boot your PC whereas sometimes there is a short delay before the USB one connects
3) USB slots on some older machines are at a premium whereas not much uses PCI these days
4) I've never 100% convinced about latency issues on USB networking devices, I know for example my old USB ADSL modem wasn't much cop.
On the flipside, USB is better in the sense that:
1) Easier to port between machines e.g. say you buy a new PC you can move it between them in a matter of seconds
2) Potentially a bit more flexible in terms of where you locate it; PCI adapters will restrict your aerial position to somewhere round the back of your tower near the bottom whereas if you have front and back USB ports you get a few more opportunities in terms of where you place it - could help if you are a long way from your WiFi hub.
3) Arguably easier to setup for novices i.e. no need to insert anything inside the case.
4) Modern PCs tend to have stacks of USB ports and not many PCI slots
Personally I would take PCI over USB anyday
1) It has higher bandwidth than USB1.1
2) In my experience PCI network adapters 'start up' quicker than USB i.e. connect up straight away when you boot your PC whereas sometimes there is a short delay before the USB one connects
3) USB slots on some older machines are at a premium whereas not much uses PCI these days
4) I've never 100% convinced about latency issues on USB networking devices, I know for example my old USB ADSL modem wasn't much cop.
On the flipside, USB is better in the sense that:
1) Easier to port between machines e.g. say you buy a new PC you can move it between them in a matter of seconds
2) Potentially a bit more flexible in terms of where you locate it; PCI adapters will restrict your aerial position to somewhere round the back of your tower near the bottom whereas if you have front and back USB ports you get a few more opportunities in terms of where you place it - could help if you are a long way from your WiFi hub.
3) Arguably easier to setup for novices i.e. no need to insert anything inside the case.
4) Modern PCs tend to have stacks of USB ports and not many PCI slots
Personally I would take PCI over USB anyday
2. You can buy huge antennas and trial it anywhere you want, hang it on the wall etc.
3. True, but if they can't insert a PCI card into a motherboard; they shouldn't be asking this question.
4. Very uninformed comment, it depends what motherboard you have. For example, motherboard P67A has 3 PCI slots. The £80 cheaper version has only 1 PCI slot.
That is like saying not many motherboards have SATA 2 ports when someone asked SATA 2 or SATA 3.
But yes, go for PCI.
Not sure why anything you've said there makes my comment #4 "very uninformed", I said 'tend to' which implies there is some variation but there is is a general trend.
Then you've loosely cited examples showing motherboards with 1-3 PCI slots - so like I said, not many relative to older PCs, or indeed relative to the number of USB ports on modern PCs, which will normally be a lot higher (looking at the P67A you quote, it looks like the majority have at least 14 USB ports)
OK so even if all those ports aren't wired up I'd still stand by my statement that modern PCs have stacks of USB ports and not many PCI slots, it's gone from being maybe a 1.5-2x ratio on older PCs to something more like 5:1 or greater these days.